8 years for Wilmette burglar

Evanston man pleads guilty to stealing $7,000 in jewelry from home in 2011

January 22, 2013|By Brian L. Cox, Special to the Tribune

Booking photo of Creed V. McGee (Wilmette Police Department photo)

An Evanston man was sentenced to eight years in prison after pleading guilty this month to stealing $7,000 worth of jewelry during a Wilmette home burglary in late 2011, court records show.

Creed V. McGee, 46, of the 1900 block of Jackson Avenue in Evanston, was charged Dec. 16, 2011, with burglary after he was arrested by police in the 400 block of 10th Street in Wilmette.

Police had gotten a 911 call from an 18-year-old resident of a home in the 900 block of Oakwood Avenue. The teen told police he heard footsteps in the hallway outside his second-floor bedroom.

When the teen opened his door, he saw someone with a flashlight in the adjacent master bedroom, searching through the dressers, police said.

A police report said one of the men heard the door open and asked the other, "Was that you, G?"

The other responded, "Yeah," according to the police report.

Authorities said the teen closed the door and called police from his closet. The two men fled when police arrived, authorities said.

McGee was arrested shortly afterward, and police recovered $7,000 worth of jewelry, including a pair of gold chains, a string of pearls and gold and silver pendants.

Police said the burglars had pried open the home's rear door and unscrewed motion lights attached to the garage before targeting the second-floor master bedroom. A second man was arrested and charged, but the outcome of his case was not unavailable Monday.

McGee pleaded guilty Jan. 7 at the Skokie courthouse and was also fined $384, according to court records.